I have just upgraded to SU 2016. I have only just about finished moving/copying scrapbooks, materials, extensions, etc, from SU 2015. It would be great to have the installation of a new version do a lot of this for you.
I have also found that the Extension Warehouse is not up to speed with new versions. This makes you nervous to install old extensions and yet many will work just fine with the new version. Some work to be done there I feel.
It will take a little time for authors to get their extensions signed.
Generally it is not wise to simply copy extensions from one version of SketchUp to another. Unless you are AR about keeping them up to date, you may wind up installing older versions.
My first reaction when reading the many threads like this is, oh come on it aināt that hard these days.
Which, with the development of Sketchucation Bundles and E Warehouse My extensions , is true, But, and itās a big jelly wobbling butt, it would be so much better if it was all automatic and used the most up to date plugins available and told you what it couldnāt do so you could look for the odd ones you still need to get from elsewhere.
Then imported you shortcuts and general toolbar layout. It should give you the option to start fresh if you want or simply import all.
Like installing a different browser, you have the option to import favorites, settings etc from others.
Ideally a seamless simple click the update button and everything transfers over (with a warning you do so at your own risk) and 2017 opens up as if it was 2016.
Indeed, that would be nice. I do use the short amount of time spent setting up a new version of SketchUp to clean house and get rid of extensions and other things I never use. If it was an automatic update for all of that, it would just get more and more cluttered.
I agree Dave, you and I both have a good clean up each time, but often because we have tried it plugins for other people and such. I would probably never use the auto update, same as I never import favorites and such. But the majority of people just want it to work like it did yesterday. And so they should, youāve paid for it and itās part of your business, taking time out of your work day to set it all up again isnāt an incentive to keep up with your maintenance fees.
Seamless integration of cloud based software is a big selling point.
Iām sure Iāve mentioned it elsewhere; if your license is linked to an on-line profile, then would there be a problem in having your settings uploaded to the same on-line profile? Any re-installs or group licencing (Iām thinking on schools) could download the settings directly from the profile. Option to set a password to lock changes and/or force refresh of profile on each instance of SU opened under that license.
Probably only a ābackupā stored on the cloud that would check for changes on open/close and ask if the profile should be updated. Have an option to change user (license) and pull down that userās profiles - if it exists locally then use that rather than downloading.
In this way, any future updates could just pull info down. Obviously you could/would only do this for the Pro version.
This is clearly a much rehearsed topic and there are some good suggestions here.
Even if itās difficult or inadvisable to automate the process fully, you could have something that at least reminds you at each install what you might have to alter and where to do it. Part of the problem for non-geeks is just navigation and identification. You know what you want but youāre never that sure how to do it! I find that nerdy types tend to pooh-pooh this kind of complaint because it is not an issue for them at all.
Rehearsed no, repeated yes.
You might want to consider your nerdy types reference.
There is a significant difference between a nerd and someone who understands how something works. Nerd is a derogatory term verging on being the other N word. A basic understanding of software, not coding, is pretty normal in this day and age. Considering both my parents in their mid 80s can grasp more than a rudimentary click this to do this.
I donāt think anyone was pooh-poohing this. It would be helpful as long as it doesnāt create more problems than it solves.
One thing you can do as far as assets like materials, components in local collections and styles are concerned is create a master directory in some location. Set it up something like this:
My SketchUp Assets
Obvious the folders under each of the main headings would be made to suit your needs.
In SketchUp, go to the appropriate utility window and use Open or Create Local collection and select the appropriate main heading. After opening it, choose Add to favorites. When you set up a a new version of SketchUp, hit each of the three windows and youāll have completed the task. Shouldnāt take more than a minute.
Another great suggestion DaveR. Thanks.
Oops! I seem to have touched a raw nerve. Didnāt mean to (you have to be soooo careful these days). I guess I used the N word and the G word, double jeopardy.
The only point I was making was that using software is a bit like driving a car. Not everyone (most people?) knows how an internal combustion engine works. For those who do, it can help a lot. Most of us are lazy. We just want to get in and go. Is that so bad?
Also, Iām British so a lot of what I write has to be taken with pinch of salt. Itās how we hang over here!
Mostly my point is or wasā¦
Come and ask and you will get help.
Come and complain and youāll be ignored, or worse still, get answers from hipsters.
@simoncbevans,
It is a a valid ārequestā, but you need to be a bit of a geek or a nerd to appreciate the complexity migrating User content involvesā¦
I wrote my own plugin for the v14 ā v15 moveā¦
with a small tweak it would also work āfromā v15 to v16ā¦
however, I donāt even use it, because āHouse Cleaningā is so difficult to incorporateā¦
e.g. The one item that SU does migrate is the .plist [Preference List] and it is full of redundant information from previous versionsā¦
As Iām also on a mac, I find it much simpler to keep my various āSketchUpā folders in the āFinderā Sidebar and drag copies of needed content between themā¦
If all users, always used the ādefaultā folders and always upgraded sequentially from version to version, then itās feasible that more content could be programmatically migratedā¦
Each potential variation from that ānormā requires a ābespokeā solutionā¦
john
Mr Box, you make a fair point. I do ask, quite often, and I do get lots of useful responses. Itās one of the joyous things about being an SU community member.
I can see how my comment could be interpreted as a ācomplaintā but I thought of it as an observation. In a way, itās pretty obvious that someone who is an expert may sometimes not accept that a problem exists because it is not a problem for them, thatās all. Just as I may need to be more tolerant of Gs and Ns, perhaps they need to be more tolerant of tech illiterates!
Just as illustration, I have said for years that trying to draw with a mouse is not intuitive and that what is needed is the ability to draw directly on a screen. I used to be treated like a halfwit by computer people who kept telling me what a brilliant invention the mouse was (which I agree with, but not for drawing). Now we are just beginning to see the advent of screens large enough and software capable of making my dream come true. And surely Apple products are proof if proof were needed that the KISS principle applies in the computer world just as it does in life.
Funnily enough, I see that another SU Sage has just posted in this thread and has used both the G and N words! Probably my fault for starting it.
OK, I think Iāve been convinced by this thread that automation is not the way forward but good file management by users is.
The only thing that puzzles me is that I used to be an AC user and they seemed to manage migration pretty well with little effort from the user.
Itās always a delicate balance. It is very easy for a technically naive person to ask a question that is extremely difficult to answer at a non-technical level other than to say āno, you canātā - which is not satisfying to anyone. And it is equally easy for a gearhead (to introduce another G word 
) not to realize when they are spouting mumbo-jumbo instead of explaining. So we must all try our best and be patient with one another.
AC also run a very tight ship that prevents users from even looking at some of their previous content in a newer versionā¦
john
I would so use this feature!!! Itās the biggest headache for me to upgrade to a newer version. You might not think itās a big deal, but Iāve set up everything just right, Iāve got the plugins I use all set up just so, and then BAM! Another version comes along (happy to have new versions- donāt get me wrong), and BOOM, i have to do it all over again.
This also brings up another side issue that deserves itās own thread: what is up with the default tools when you install a new version on SU? Why not at least show the large tool set?
Thanks.